The spiders silk
840 Words
Third person pov( Maeve)
The medical wing was too quiet, the air smelling of forced recovery and tension. Maeve sat on the edge of the bed, the silk robe Aria had brought her feeling like a second skin.
She wasn't the broken girl they thought she was. Julian had taught her many things while she was "under", the most important being that in a house full of Alphas, the one who whispers the loudest is the one who eventually leads.
The door creaked open. It wasn't Aria this time.
It was Cassian. He looked like a man who had been put through a meat grinder. His shirt was wrinkled, his eyes were bloodshot, and he carried the heavy, intoxicating scent of bourbon mixed with the lingering perfume of the girl he’d just kissed in the garden.
"You should be resting," he said, his voice a rough, gravelly mess. He didn't look at her directly; he was staring at the IV pole as if it held the secrets to his ruined life.
"I’ve rested enough, Cassian," Maeve said, her voice soft and melodic. She stood up, the floor cold against her bare feet. She moved toward him, slow and deliberate, like a predator masquerading as a ghost. "The house is screaming. I can hear it. I can hear the way your heart is breaking for a girl who doesn't know which brother to choose."
Cassian finally looked at her, his brow furrowing. "Don't, Maeve. I’m not in the mood for riddles."
"It’s not a riddle." She stopped just inches from him. She could feel the heat radiating off his body, the raw, chaotic energy of a Vaelor in pain. "Elena lied to you. Noah kept secrets from you. Aria... she’s just a prize they're all fighting over. But I? I’m the only one who truly knows what you sacrificed to keep this place standing."
She reached up, her fingers cold as they brushed against the stubble on his jaw. He flinched, but he didn't pull away. The silence between them stretched, taut and dangerous.
"You're the one who ripped out his heart," she whispered, leaning in until her lips were ghosting against the shell of his ear. "You're the one with the blood on your hands. Why should Noah get the empire and the girl while you get the blame and the guilt?"
Cassian's breath hitched. His hands came up to her waist, not to push her away, but to steady himself. He was weak, fueled by alcohol and the crushing weight of his mother’s return. He was the perfect target for someone who knew exactly how to play on his insecurities.
"Maeve..." he warned, but his grip on her robe tightened.
"Let me help you forget, Cassian," she breathed, her hand sliding down to the nape of his neck, pulling him closer. "Just for a night. Let’s give the Grand Luna something else to talk about at dinner."
She knew exactly what she was doing. If she could control Cassian, she wouldn't just be a guest or a "victim" in this house. She’d be the woman holding the leash of the most volatile Alpha in the Vaelor line. Elena was a fool for playing the Julian card; Maeve was playing the long game.
She started to press her lips to the hollow of his throat, and for a second, Cassian seemed to give in. The tension in his shoulders snapped.
“I know you crave for it," Maeve looked up at him, her doe eyes enticing him into what he knew was wrong. “You can have me only to yourself, you won't have to share with your brother like you always have to in the name of twins.”
Her hands found their way to the belt of his pants.
It was working…almost.
But then, the door at the end of the hall slammed.
Noah’s voice boomed, calling for his brother. The spell didn't break, but it shifted. Cassian pulled back, his eyes dark and clouded, looking at her as if he were seeing a mirage.
"I have to go," he muttered, shoving his hands into his pockets.
"I'll be here," she promised, sitting back down on the bed and smoothing her robe. "When the noise in your head gets too loud, Cassian... I’ll be right here."
As he turned and walked out, a small, sharp smile touched Maeve's lips. The North was coming for her fool of a cousin, but they had no idea that the real danger in this house wasn't the girl with the Mark. It was the one who had survived the monster and learned all his tricks.
Maeve lay back on the bed, swinging her legs with that soft smile forming on her face as she fantasized the wealth and power that were coming closer and closer to her grasp.
It was only a matter of time.
Everything was going according to plan.
- Writer
